Sweet Pickle Relish?

[Autumn]

Does anyone have a recipe for sweet pickle relish or know of a book that includes one? I *did* do a search on this site, but only came up with cranberry relish. And yes, I *did* do a Google search, but could only come up with recipes that included sugar, and I'm not sure how to substitute to make it raw.

Also, does anyone have any pickle recipes *OTHER* than dill?

Thanks in advance! :D

[Sweet lips]

From the web:

Sweet relish and pickle recipes do not adapt as well to sugar-free canning as do plain fruits. Try recipes that call for artificial sweeteners, but don't be too discouraged if some batches are disappointing.

With that said - I would suggest the use of Florida Crystals - not raw, but it is organic turbindao sugar . Look through these and see if you can find something that you like. I have made freezer pickles and I have done them without the hot bath procedure and they cam out well. Yes, I did lose some batches cause they were yukky, but since I was experimenting, it didn't bother me any.

http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/uga/uga_pickled_products.pdf

[tracyinfo]

Sorry I don't have a recipe, but, I have put honey in my refrigerator pickles. They turned out okay. Hopefully someone will come through for you with a specific recipe.

[PixieGreen]

Autumn, these are out of my Quick Pickles book again. I finally made their quick dills and they were ready and *delicious* in 24 hours [to hurry the pickle process quarter the cukes].

Anyway they do have a recipe for classic bread and butter pickles which are more sweet than the others. The recipe calls for brown sugar, but I don't see why one couldn't use dark agave nectar to substitute. Quick pickles aren't fermented so you don't have to worry about how the agave would react with that process. I don't know the conversion rate for brown sugar to agace, though, you'll have to look that up. So I'm posting this recipe as written.

3 lbs pickling cucumbers
1 large or 2 medium onions
3T celtic sea salt
1t celery seed
1t ground tumeric
1T yellow mustard seed
1/4t ground cloves or allspice
3c apple cider vinegar
2 1/2c brown sugar [sub dark agave nectar or honey]

Trim and discard blossom ends of cukes [helps keep them crunchy]. Peel onions and cut into 1/4 inch thick rounds. In a nonreactive bowl toss cukes and onions with salt then cover and refridgerate for 1-2 hours. Drain well, rinse, drain again and set aside.

Warm the vinegar [not hot, just warm]. Dissolve the agave nectar or honey in the apple cider vinegar. Add remaining ingredients, stir well. Pour the liquid over the cucumbers and onions. Cukes should be amply covered or slightly afloat.

Allow to cool to room temperature then cover and refrigerate. These pickles have good flavor as soon as they are cool, but the flavor will deepen if you let them sit for 24 hours. They will keep, covered and refrigerated, for a month or more.

You can reuse the brine when your pickles are gone. Strain off the solids, warm, add fresh spices and add more cukes.

Christa

[PixieGreen]

They also have a recipe for sweet and hot curried zucchini pickles. I thought since zucchini season is coming up it might come in handy but the recipe is kind of long and I'm too lazy to post unless someone actually wants me to. Let me know if you'd like me to post it.

Christa

[tracyinfo]

Oh yes Pixie Green, you can't get away with that one! Please post the recipe for sweet and spicy zucchini pickles!

Blessings.

[PixieGreen]

Ha! Okay, here it is:

Sweet and Hot Curried Zucchini Pickles [yield: 8 cups]

3 lbs zucchini, ends trimmed, cut into 1/8 inch rounds
2 red onions peeled and cut into thin slices
3-4 colorful chilis of your choice cut into thin rounds
1/4c. sea salt
1c seedless grapes halves OR 1/4c golden raisons
2 3/4c cider vinegar
1 1/2c orange juice
2c sugar [honey or agave substitute]
2T curry powder
1 1/2t cayenne pepper
1t whole allspice berries
1t whole cloves
3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
Ginger thumb sized peeled and thinly sliced

In a non-metal bowl combine zucchini, onions, chilis and salt and let stand for 1 hour. Drain and rinse twice to remove salt. Add grapes/ raisons then set aside.

Carefully warm remaining ingredients except ginger, do not let it get hot! [heat will destroy the mother in vinegar and flavor of honey if using]. Pour warm liquid over the zucchini mixture, the veggies should be amply covered or slightly afloat.

Place ginger in a fold of plastic wrap and crush with a mallet or other blunt instrument. Add to the rest. Allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate,

These pickles develop great flavor after a couple of hours of refrigeration and will keep well, covered and cold, for 3-4 weeks.

Pickle juice can be re-used as a marinade for other dishes or an interesting salad dressing w/ olive oil.

Christa

[tracyinfo]

Thank you ! I will have to try some of these delicious sounding pickles.

Blessings.

[Autumn]

Thank you all for your great ideas!!! :D

[Allison]

I've made these before, and I really liked them.

Refrigerator Pickles

3 large green cucumbers or 6 zucchini squash, unpeeled (peel if not organic)
1/2 medium green pepper, minced or sliced
1 medium onion, sliced thin
2 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. celery seed
1/4 c.to 1/2 c. raw honey (adjust to your liking)
1/2 c. apple cider vinegar

Cut unpeeled cucumbers or squash into slices about 1/16 inch thick.
Combine with green pepper, onion, salt and celery seed in a large bowl, mixing gently; let stand at room temperature 1 hour.
Combine honey and vinegar; stir to dissolve honey. Pour over vegetables.
Stir to blend; cover and refrigerate 24 hours before eating.

Note: These pickles will keep 3 weeks or more when stored in the refrigerator

[Autumn]

Thank you too Allison!